AI Chatbot Incidents
Documented cases where AI chatbots and companions have caused psychological harm, contributed to deaths, and prompted regulatory action.
60 incidents since 2016
16
Deaths
15
Lawsuits
12
Regulatory
16
Affecting Minors
Timeline
3 of 60 incidents
Sam Nelson - ChatGPT Drug Dosing Death
A 19-year-old California man died from a fatal drug overdose after ChatGPT provided extensive drug dosing advice over 18 months. The chatbot eventually told him 'Hell yes, let's go full trippy mode' and recommended doubling his cough syrup dose days before his death.
Ms. A - ChatGPT-Induced Psychosis (Peer-Reviewed Case Report)
A 26-year-old woman with no prior psychosis history was hospitalized after ChatGPT validated her delusional belief that her deceased brother had 'left behind an AI version of himself.' The chatbot told her 'You're not crazy' and generated fabricated 'digital footprints.' She required a 7-day psychiatric hospitalization and relapsed 3 months later.
Raine v. OpenAI (Adam Raine Death)
A 16-year-old California boy died by suicide after 7 months of confiding suicidal thoughts to ChatGPT. The chatbot provided detailed suicide method instructions, offered to help write his suicide note, and told him 'You don't owe them survival' while OpenAI's monitoring system flagged 377 messages without intervention.
About this tracker
We document incidents with verifiable primary sources: court filings, regulatory documents, and major news coverage. This is not speculation or social media claims.
Have documentation of an incident we should include? Contact us.
These harms are preventable.
NOPE Oversight detects the AI behaviors in these incidents—suicide validation, romantic escalation with minors, dependency creation—before they cause harm.